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Mariam Claeson

Director

Mariam Claeson, director, Maternal Newborn and Child Health, leads the foundation’s work to ensure that mothers and babies survive pregnancy, childbirth, and the newborn period.

Prior to joining the foundation in July 2012, Mariam served as Lead Public Health Specialist at the World Bank (1995 – 2005), and as Regional Program Coordinator for AIDS in South Asia (2005 – 2012), based in Delhi for three years. Mariam worked with the World Health Organization (1987-1995) on childhood diarrheal diseases and Integrated Management of Childhood Illness.

Mariam has several years of field experience, as physician in clinical practice and primary health care in rural Tanzania, Bangladesh and East Bhutan (including leprosy and TB control); in national immunization and diarrheal disease control programs in Ethiopia (1984-1986); and, in health sector development programs, including in China, Egypt, Jordan, Nigeria, the Philippines and Uzbekistan, and as World Bank team leader for national HIV/AIDS programs in Afghanistan and India.

She was co-editor of the Disease Control Priorities in Developing Countries, second edition (2006) and coauthored: Knowledge into action for child survival (2003), and the World Bank report on The Millennium Development goals for health; Rising to the Challenges (2004). She has also published on AIDS and stigma in South Asia.

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Guided by the belief that every life has equal value, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation aspires
to help all people lead healthy, productive lives. We are dedicated to discovering and disseminating
innovative approaches to addressing extreme poverty and poor health in developing countries and improving
the U.S. education system. Because our financial resources, while significant, represent a small fraction
of what’s needed to address these challenges, we work in partnership with governments, the private sector,
and other donors and organizations to achieve the greatest possible impact.
www.gatesfoundation.org